The Bee's guide to events, activities, arts and entertainment

September 29, 2011

Paula Poundstone WHAT: This funny lady, who's also an author and an award-winning panelist on NPR's "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" news quiz show, brings her stand-up act to town as a special benefit for the Friends of the Sacramento Library. She'll be selling and autographing copies of her book, "There's Nothing in This Book That I Meant To Say," and donating a portion of the proceeds to the library group.

WHAT: The jazz and pop singer and her collaborator Danny White have always drawn from timeless influences: the rhythms and styles of Latin music, the sound of classic American soul and R&B, and the polish of '50s and '60s jazz to create something fresh and exciting. Her latest recording is called "It's That Girl Again."

WHEN: 7 p.m.

WHERE: Harlow's, 2708 J St., Sacramento

COST: $35

INFORMATION: (916) 441-4693

SATURDAY

Cultural celebration

2011 Romanian Festival

WHAT: The Romanian community of Sacramento presents its 10th anniversary heritage celebration. Romanian artists, performers and folk dance groups will participate. And there will be traditional food and handicrafts for sale. The early afternoon also will feature children's activities.

WHAT: Yes, the tomato is technically a fruit - and Tomato Battle, based out of Seattle, but mimicking the famed La Tomatina tomato-throwing event each year in Spain - invites Northern Californians to hurl the ripe orbs all around. The tomatoes used are culled and not fit for human consumption, organizers swear, and the waste is composted afterward. So there. There also will be live entertainment, a costume contest and a beer garden.

NOTE: Eye protection is recommended - swimming goggles or sunglasses work great; shoes with a good tread are a good idea. Wear clothes you don't mind getting very dirty and bring a change of clothes to get home unless you want ketchup in your car.

WHAT: The 15th annual event promises two days of music and magic - not to mention Scottish games, historic re-enactments, shopping, camping and plenty of food and drink. It's a fundraiser for the Grass Valley community radio station. Musicians include Old Blind Dogs from Scotland, the California Celtic jam-band Wake the Dead, Celtic rockers the Young Dubliners (pictured) and Molly's Revenge, among others.

WHAT: The fifth annual event is a combination music festival and pasta cook-off, staged as a fundraiser for Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation. Music - by such groups as the Nibblers, Mercy Me!, Walking Spanish, Kaye Bohler and Pailer, Adams & Joyce, among others - will be presented on two stages (inside and in the parking lot). Cooks for 10 local restaurants - the pugilistic potentates of pasta, they call them - will participate in the competition. There will be raffle items and a silent auction, too.

WHAT: To mark the 25th anniversary of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Cameron Mackintosh's inescapable musical, a live production of the show from the Royal Albert Hall in London will be beamed into theaters nationwide. The "music of the night" actually will be heard before noon here.

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